Adding zinc to your wine, coffee and chocolate diet could make you live longer

• A new study suggests that adding zinc to a diet that includes chocolate, coffee, and tea could help you live longer.

• This can reduce the damage caused by oxidation.

• Indeed, zinc combines with a molecule present in these foods to mimic an enzyme that decomposes superoxide.

• Superoxide damages proteins, lipids and DNA and contributes to aging.

Research has consistently shown that many vitamin supplements can be essentially useless. But one of the most beneficial vitamins for us is zinc, which is difficult to absorb in our daily diet.

According to a new study published in the journal Nature Chemistry, the addition of zinc to a diet rich in a component of wine, coffee, tea and chocolate could extend life expectancy.

Researchers from the University of Erlangen in Nuremberg and Auburn University in Alabama have discovered that a substance present in polyphenols – responsible for smell and taste – is activated by zinc and produces a natural protection agent against superoxide.

Superoxide is produced by the cells of the body but damages our proteins and our DNA. It is believed to play a role in the aging process, as well as to be responsible for certain cancers and neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease.

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Antioxidant polyphenols are found in chocolate, wine, coffee and tea, and the researchers combined them in a lab with zinc to see what happened.

The result is a "metal complex" mimicking an enzyme in the body that breaks down superoxides, so that they are metabolized and that oxidative damage is avoided.

This is the first time that the effects of this enzyme are replicated, said the researchers.

"It is certainly possible that wine, coffee, tea or chocolate will be available in the future with added zinc," said researcher Ivana Ivanovi-Burmazovi. "However, any alcohol content would destroy the positive effects of this combination."

Earlier this year, research showed that eating three chocolate bars a month could reduce the risk of heart disease. This could be due to the anti-inflammatory benefits of dark chocolate components. Another study this year revealed that an anti-inflammatory diet, including coffee, chocolate and red wine, could reduce your chances of dying sooner.

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